a day ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Little Leaguer reveals awkward Shohei Ohtani run-in: ‘Never liked him ever since'
Not everybody admires Shohei Ohtani.
A young girl playing for Australia's Little League World Series baseball team explained why she's not a fan of the two-way Dodgers superstar in an interview during the Mets-Mariners game on 'Sunday Night Baseball's' KidsCast.
Monica Arcuri from Brisbane said she went to Anaheim to see the Angels play in 2023 and saw Ohtani hit a home run off Blue Jays pitcher Yusei Kikuchi.
Monica Arcuri (r.) during Australia's Little League World Series game against Canada on Aug. 17, 2025.
AP
'He hit a home run into an area where the fans couldn't go, and then this guy got the ball and gave it to my brother,' Arcuri explained. 'So the next day we went to the VIP box at the front and I asked for his signature, but all he gave me was a side eye and not a nice glance. So after that, I've never liked him ever since. He's not really humble. Not my style.'
Ohtani did hit a home run off Kikuchi in the third inning of an April 9, 2023, game at Angel Stadium, the ball landing near the rock formation in center field.
Both Ohtani and Kikuchi attended Hanamaki Higashi High School in Japan, though not at the same time.
Shohei Ohtani
Denver Post via Getty Images
2023 was Ohtani's last season with the Angels before he signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers, though $680 million of that is deferred. Ohtani did not pitch last season due to elbow surgery, but helped lead the Dodgers to a World Series victory and won the NL MVP.
The 31-year-old recently made headlines because he and his agent, Nez Balelo, were sued by a Hawaii real estate investor and broker for allegedly getting them fired from a $240 million luxury housing development on the Hapuna Coast.
